I-2-1-55.Assignment of Service Area Cases to Administrative Law Judges

When the hearing office (HO) receives a valid request for hearing (RH) or
an Appeals Council (AC) remand and completes the procedures set forth in
the Hearings, Appeals and Litigation Law (HALLEX) manual chapter
I-2-0, the Hearing Office Chief
Administrative Law Judge (HOCALJ), acting as the Deputy Commissioner's
“delegate,” will assign the case to an administrative law
judge (ALJ).

The HOCALJ generally assigns cases to ALJs on a rotational basis, with the
earliest (i.e., oldest) RHs receiving priority, unless there is a special
situation that requires a change in the order in which a case is assigned.
See subsection D below.

The Regional Chief Administrative Law Judge (RCALJ) determines which areas
within an HO's service area are to be served from the HO and which are to
be served from the remote hearing site(s). In making such determinations,
the RCALJ considers recommendations from the HOCALJ. Such areas may
require modification periodically based on case receipts and other service
and cost factors.

C. Case Assignments Requiring Travel Within the Hearing Office Service Area

ALJs will generally accumulate a docket of cases to be heard at the remote
site to minimize administrative travel and related costs. If a remote site
has video teleconferencing (VTC) availability, ALJs are encouraged to hold
hearings by VTC. VTC use is encouraged because it does not necessarily
require the ALJ to accumulate a docket of cases required for travel
dockets.

In a time-limited court remand case, a court has ordered the Commissioner
to complete one or more specific actions within a set time period. Flag
and assign the case immediately.

A time-limited court remand case reaches the ALJ via the AC. AC remands,
including those generated by the courts, are generally assigned to the
same ALJ who issued the decision or dismissal, unless the AC or court
specifically directs otherwise, or the ALJ is no longer with the
agency.

In 8001 cases, the AC has assumed jurisdiction on its own motion of an
ALJ's favorable disability decision and remanded the case for further
proceedings. If certain time frames are not (or have not been) met, the
Social Security Administration must pay interim benefits to the claimant
until the proceedings on remand have been completed. Flag and assign the
case immediately. For more information on interim disability benefits in
cases of delayed final decisions, see HALLEX
I-3-6-40.

A delayed court remand case is over 125 days old (counting from the date
of the court's order) or a court remand that the AC remanded to an ALJ a
second time. Flag and assign the case immediately. If the AC remanded a
second time, assign to a different ALJ.

Flag and assign the case immediately. AC remands are assigned to the same
ALJ who issued the decision or dismissal unless:

the case was previously assigned to that ALJ on a prior remand from the AC
and the ALJ's decision or dismissal after remand is the subject of the new
AC remand; or

the AC directs that the case be assigned to a different ALJ.

NOTE:

AC remands for decisions or dismissals issued by National Hearing Center
(NHC) ALJs are sent to the HO servicing the claimant's current address. If
the NHC is still providing assistance to the HO and the NHC ALJ is
currently on duty in the same NHC, the case may be assigned to the NHC ALJ
unless the claimant has filed a timely objection to appearing at the
hearing by VTC. See HALLEX
I-2-0-21.

Assign the case immediately as the ALJ may be able to issue a dismissal
order quickly. See HALLEX
I-2-4.

10. Case
in Which the Claimant Has Waived the Right to an Oral Hearing

Assign the case immediately as the ALJ may be able to issue a decision
quickly.

NOTE:

The ALJ may determine, based on his or her examination of the record, that
a hearing should be held despite the waiver. See HALLEX
I-2-1-82 for additional
guidance.

11. Case
in Which the Claimant Has Waived the Right to Regular Advance Notice of
Hearing

A claimant's waiver of the right to regular advance notice indicates that
he or she does not need advance notice to prepare for the hearing and
desires a hearing as soon as possible. Therefore, if the HO staff can
accommodate the claimant because of a cancellation by another claimant or
for any other reason, HO staff should assign the case to an ALJ and
schedule a hearing as soon as possible, without the usual advance
notice.

If a claimant voluntarily asks to withdraw his or her RH after an ALJ has
been assigned to the case, and the ALJ grants the claimant's request (see
HALLEX I-2-4-20), except in the
circumstances noted in subsection F, the same ALJ will generally be
assigned if the claimant later submits a RH on a new application.

NOTE:

If the previous ALJ has transferred to another office or is otherwise
unavailable (see HALLEX
I-2-8-40), the case may be
assigned to a different ALJ. However, a change in the claimant's address
will not necessarily necessitate a change in the assigned ALJ. See HALLEX
I-2-0-70 and
I-2-3-10.

Check the Case Processing and Management System (CPMS) entry for the case
to confirm that the prior dismissal was based on the claimant's voluntary
withdrawal of his or her RH. The status field should display the
“WDDI” withdrawal dismissal code. Check the decision maker
field for the name of the ALJ who issued that dismissal.

When a hearing has not yet been held, a HOCALJ may reassign a case to a
different ALJ in the following circumstances:

When it is necessary to ensure that the claimant will have his or her case
heard in a timely manner;

The ALJ who was assigned the case initially is not available to conduct
the hearing because of death, retirement, resignation, illness, or other
cause resulting in prolonged absence of 20 or more days; or

The ALJ who was assigned the case is unavailable on short notice due to
illness or other exigency, and the ALJ gave consent to the
reassignment.

NOTE:

The HOCALJ may also determine that a reassignment and case transfer are
appropriate if the ALJ initially assigned to the case indicates that
despite a change in residence while the request for hearing is pending,
the claimant's request for an in-person hearing should be honored. See
HALLEX I-2-0-21
C.